Chapter 1: History, Theory, and Applied Directions Flashcards
developmental psychology
multidisciplinary study of how people change systematically over time
What does hierarchical and self-organizing change mean?
each change is dependent upon the change before it (like a snowball that builds upon itself)
altricial
describes organisms that require a caregiver for survival
plasticity
changes in neural pathways and synapses due to changes in behavior, environment, neural processes, thinking, emotions, as well as changes resulting from bodily injury
child development
an area of study devoted to understanding constancy and change from conception through adolescence.
developmental science
the interdisciplinary field (that encompasses child development) which includes all changes we experience throughout the lifespan
behavior modification
consists of procedures that combine conditioning and modeling to eliminate undesirable behaviors and increase desirable responses.
behaviorism
directly observable events—stimuli and responses—are the appropriate focus of study
chronosystem
Bronfenbrenner called the temporal dimension of his model the chronosystem (the prefix chrono- means “time”). Life changes can be imposed on the child, as in the examples just given. Alternatively, they can arise from within the child, since as children get older they select, modify, and create many of their own settings and experiences.
cognitive-developmental theory
Jean Piaget’s theory that children actively construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore their world.
collectivist society
societies in which people define themselves as part of a group and stress group goals over individual goals
contexts
unique combinations of personal and environmental circumstances that can result in different paths of change
continuous development
a process of gradually adding more of the same types of skills that were already present
developmental cognitive neuroscience
brings together researchers from psychology, biology, neuroscience, and medicine to study the relationship between changes in the brain and the developing child’s cognitive processing and behavior patterns.
discontinuous development
a process in which new ways of understanding and responding to the world emerge at different times
dynamic systems perspective
the idea that the child’s mind, body, and physical and social worlds form an integrated system that guides mastery of new skills. The system is dynamic, or constantly in motion. A change in any part of it—from brain growth to physical and social surround- ings—disrupts the current organism–environment relationship. When this hap- pens, the child actively reorganizes her behavior so the components of the system work together again but in a more complex, effective way
ecological systems theory
views the child as developing within a complex system of relationships affected by multiple levels of the surrounding environment.
ethology
is concerned with the adaptive, or survival, value of behavior and its evolutionary history.
evolutionary developmental psychoogy
a new area of research that seeks to understand the adap- tive value of species-wide cognitive, emotional, and social competencies as those competen- cies change with age
exosystems
consists of social settings that do not contain children but that nevertheless affect children’s experiences in immediate settings.
individualistic society
societies in which people think of themselves as separate entities and are largely concerned with their own personal needs
information processing
a perspective in cognitive psychology in which the human mind might also be viewed as a symbol-manipulating system through which information flows
macrosystem
The outermost level of Bronfenbrenner’s model, the macrosystem, consists of cultural values, laws, customs, and resources.
maturation
which refers to a genetically determined, naturally unfolding course of growth
mesosystem
the second level of Bronfenbrenner’s model that
encompasses connections between microsystems
microsystem
the innermost level of an environment that consists of activities and inter- action patterns in the child’s immediate surroundings.
nature-nurture controversy
ongoing debate of the question: “Are genetic or environmental factors more important in influencing development?”
normative approach
in which measures of behavior are taken on large numbers of individuals and age-related averages are computed to represent typical development
psychoanalytic perspective
perspective that dictates children move through a series of stages in which they confront conflicts between biological drives and social expectations. How these conflicts are resolved determines the person’s ability to learn, to get along with others, and to cope with anxiety
psychosexual theory
Freud’s theory that emphasizes that how parents manage their child’s sexual and aggressive drives in the first few years is crucial for healthy personality development
psychosocial theory
Erik Erikson’s theory that emphasized that in addition to mediating between id impulses and superego demands, the ego makes a positive contribution to development, acquiring attitudes and skills that make the individual an active, contributing member of society.
public policy
laws and government programs designed to improve current conditions
resilience
the ability to adapt effectively in the face of threats to development
sensitive period
a time that is optimal for certain capacities to emerge because the individual is especially responsive to environmental influences. How- ever, its boundaries are less well-defined than those of a critical period. Development can occur later, but it is harder to induce.
social learning theory
Theory developed by Albert Bandura that emphasized modeling, otherwise known as imitation or observational learning, as a powerful source of development.
social policy
is any planned set of actions by a group, institution, or governing body directed at attaining a social goal.
sociocultural theory
focuses on how culture—the values, beliefs, customs, and skills of a social group—is transmitted to the next generation. According to Vygotsky, social interaction—in particular, cooperative dialogues between children and more knowledgeable members of society—is necessary for children to acquire the ways of thinking and behaving that make up a community’s culture.
stage
qualitative changes in thinking, feeling, and behaving that characterize specific periods of development
theory
an orderly, integrated set of statements that describe, predict, and explain a behavior.
in order for a theory to persist, it must be able to undergo scientific verification via multiple studies
